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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25481605">moving lips to breathe your name (I opened up my eyes)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesurielofficial/pseuds/thesurielofficial'>thesurielofficial</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Fluff, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pining, Post-Canon, Slow Burn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 01:57:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,435</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25481605</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesurielofficial/pseuds/thesurielofficial</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Soulmates aren't found, they're made. Sokka is thirteen when he understands this and he wishes for a love so great that it transcends to a soulbond. And Zuko? Zuko knows he will never be loved the way someone must love you to be your soulmate, so what's the point of hoping, anyway?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Bato/Hakoda (Avatar), Mai/Ty Lee (Avatar), Minor or Background Relationship(s), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>50</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>906</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>moving lips to breathe your name (I opened up my eyes)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I ended up writing this overnight because inspiration. I love soulmates but I also don't like the idea of people getting together because they think they're supposed to. So here's my soulmate AU, where a soulbond forms only if the love between two people is the highest form of love.</p><p>I mention Kiyi a few times in this; she's from the comics and is Zuko's half sister. She's Ursa and Ikem's daughter and she's adorable so I had to mention her a few times.</p><p>Title from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3nPiBai66M">Just Like Heaven by The Cure</a> because I love it and it makes me cry.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <i><br/>
You understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars<br/>
And why I've spent my whole life try to put it into words<br/>
'Cause you can hear in the silence<br/>
You can feel it on the way home<br/>
You can see it with the lights out<br/>
You are in love, true love<br/>
- You Are In Love, Taylor Swift<br/>
</i>
</p><p>Soulmates aren’t found, they’re made. Sokka is thirteen when his father explains this to him and Katara. Sokka learns that to have a soulmate is to love someone fiercely, the way Tui loves La, and to be loved back just as fiercely, the way La loves Tui. Sokka wonders how you figure out that someone is your soulmate, and Hakoda answers that when you fall in love with someone deeply, and when they love you back, your name appears next to their heart and theirs appears next to yours. Katara asks whether you can have multiple soulmates and Hakoda says that people can always fall in and out of love, or learn to love again, that soulmates can change over the course of one’s life. On that day, one of Hakoda’s last days in the South Pole, Sokka learns that to have a soulmate is something rare, something precious, something sacred.</p><p>(When Katara and Hakoda fall asleep, Sokka stares at the stars and wishes for a soulmate.)</p>
<hr/><p>Soulmates aren’t for Fire Nation princes. Zuko is ten when he learns this. It was a few years ago when Ursa had explained what a soulmate was to her son and he had asked whether she had one. Even then, he had known that his parents weren’t soulmates. Ursa had smiled instead of answering him. It was a sad smile, and it filled Zuko with a kind of ache that he couldn’t name, so he tried not to think of it again. </p><p>The next time he brings up soulmates, his mother is long gone and his father tells him that Fire Nation princes will never have soulmates, that Zuko is inherently unlovable and incapable of love, that to be descended from Agni is to know that duty is far more important than silly things like love. Zuko knows this is untrue, because Ursa had been so full of love, and how could Zuko be so void of it with a mother so wonderful?</p><p>(That night, when Zuko lies in his large bed, in his large room, he thinks about how distinctly empty it is, and he hopes that he will never have a soulmate, for to subject anyone to this emptiness and unhappiness would be blasphemous to the purity of a soulbond.)</p>
<hr/><p>When Sokka is fifteen, he is reunited with his father, in a way. He doesn’t realise it at first, when he meets Bato, but there is an odd shyness in the way he is greeted by a man who was like an uncle to him, who was family to him. And he realises it later, when Bato’s eyes light up at every mention of Hakoda, when Bato says his name with love and affection. Sokka knows that Bato loves Hakoda, in a way that is sacred and pure and full. He never asks and Bato never tells, but he knows that this is what it must be like to love a soulmate.</p><p>When Sokka meets Yue, he wonders if she could be his soulmate some day. She seems like the kind of person he could fall in love with. But Yue is betrothed to another, and Sokka knows that even though it is unfair, they will not get the time to fall in love. When Yue becomes the moon spirit, Sokka knows that he fell in love with her anyway, and perhaps he will always carry that love with him.</p><p>(In the next town they stop at, Sokka decides to get a crescent moon tattooed on his shoulder blade, right below the sheath for his boomerang.)</p>
<hr/><p>Zuko has no time for childhood fantasies of love and soulmates now. Zuko has a job to do, and he will do it and he will return. He will regain his honour, because he has to, he has to, he has to. But General Zhao is dead and the Avatar has slipped from his fingers again, and Zuko knows, this time that there is nothing he can do to redeem himself. He begins anew, he decides to find his own path. In the end, it leads him back to his uncle, and then to Ba Sing Se. He begins a new life for himself as Lee and there is a certain peace in not having to worry about the Avatar 24/7. </p><p>He tries not to think of soulmates, but the thoughts creep in anyway. For the first time, Zuko realises that he is no longer a Fire Nation prince, banished or not. He is just another ordinary citizen of the large, well protected city of Ba Sing Se, and if he falls in love, he can continue to stay in love.</p><p>But Zuko’s soul yearns for fire, for adventure, and in his heart, he knows he will never be satisfied with a quiet life serving tea. He likes Jin, he really does, but he knows that people like her will never be right for people like him. She is soft, and she is kind; Zuko burns everything in his path. There is too much pain in his eyes, and he won’t let his pain corrupt someone like her.</p><p>Zuko helps the Avatar and meets the waterbender girl, Katara, and then he’s roped back into the war and he knows what his destiny is now. In the end, he joins Azula. </p><p>(All Zuko has ever wanted is redemption.)</p>
<hr/><p>“Dad,” Sokka says, one night. There is a question that has been at the back of his mind and he can finally ask his father.</p><p>“Yes, Sokka?”</p><p>“Remember when you explained soulmates to me and Katara?” The fire crackles in the silent night and Sokka can see the lines of Hakoda’s face grow deeper. In this light, the world looks like it is made of shadows and slivers of light where the darkness could not reach.</p><p>“Yes, of course. You both had so many questions that night.” Hakoda smiles a bit, at the memory, a fond memory of a parent telling his children a story, a memory of innocence and childhood. </p><p>“You and Bato are soulmates,” Sokka states. There is no bitterness in his voice, for he knows Bato is wonderful and all he wants is for his father to be happy.</p><p>“Yes, we are. I am extremely lucky to have him,” Hakoda replies, his gaze a little wary, as if he is afraid of what his son will think.</p><p>“I’m happy for you, dad. You and Bato deserve to be happy,” Sokka says, and he really does mean it. His father lost a soulmate but found another and Sokka is glad that he was able to move on. “Isn’t it scary, though: to love someone and fight beside them, knowing the risk?”</p><p>“Love during war is a strange thing, Sokka. I cannot remember a time I didn’t love Bato. I suppose in the past few years, that love just evolved into something more romantic. It’s terrifying to know that one of us could die fighting, but the love we share is worth the risk.” Hakoda’s face is relaxed now, and Sokka almost aches because even with everything that has happened, his father has managed to find love, to find happiness. Not everyone gets soulmates, but Sokka wants to know what it is like to love in a way that is all-consuming. </p><p>Sokka thinks of Suki, then, and hopes she is fine. He hopes that he can see her again. </p><p>“What happened to mom’s soulmark?” he finally asks.</p><p>“Your mother was my first love. Getting a soulmate is rare, and to get two is rarer, but the spirits must have blessed me. Your mother’s name is still there, and always will be, though it has faded now. I will always love her, and I will always miss her, but that doesn’t diminish my love for Bato, just as my love for him does not mean that I have forgotten Kya.”</p><p>They keep watch for a little longer before the sun finally rises and Sokka can take a nap for a few hours before they have to set off again. In the daylight, the fire seems so ordinary, but when Sokka drifts to thoughts of soulmates and love, he can feel the warmth of the embers chase away the cold of dawn before the sun truly warms the earth.</p>
<hr/><p>When the war ends, there is the aftermath. Some scars can never truly heal: Zuko knows this too well. The reign of Sozin, Azulon and Ozai have consequences and there is work to do. Zuko is in the midst of revising the school curriculum when Mai walks in. There’s so many things Zuko wants to say- apologies and thank yous.</p><p>“Before you say anything, hear me out,” Mai begins, making a ‘zip-it’ motion with her fingers. “Firstly, you do not have to apologise for anything. When you broke up with me or whatever, I thought it had hurt, and I thought I loved you but now I realise that what we had was platonic and we both forced the romantic part. You were an asshole, yes, but no harm, no foul, right?”</p><p>Zuko opens his mouth, to say, well, he doesn’t know what to say. He feels relieved, in a way. Lately, he had realised that he may not be as attracted to women as he thought he once was and to know that Mai didn’t have feelings for him anymore, or never really had them, does mean that he won’t hurt her. But before he can say a word, Mai continues.</p><p>“Secondly, I have a soulmate.” Mai is decidedly not looking at Zuko when she says this.</p><p>“Mai, that’s incredible! Who is it?” </p><p>“It’s Ty Lee,” Mai says, finally looking at Zuko, and her eyes are soft and she’s smiling her rare smile. It’s clear that she’s happy, incandescently so. “When she betrayed Azula for me, we were imprisoned together. She’s my best friend, and she was there for me back then. And I suppose we realised that we love each other.”</p><p>“I have to say, I’m a little surprised, but I’m happy for the two of you, I really am,” Zuko says, and he’s smiling too, all the papers on his desk forgotten. “Agni, Mai, I still am sorry for how I treated you, but I’m so happy that it worked out for you in the end. I’m glad to see you, I’ve missed you.”</p><p>“Well, it did work out for me, but what about you? How was betraying the entire Fire Nation and then becoming Fire Lord?” Mai asks, swinging her legs over the armchair near the window, her limbs sprawling over the red cushioning.</p><p>“Not soulmate worthy, but I guess I did figure out my destiny. And I did have a bit of a revelation, too,” Zuko says, surprisingly nervous about this. “I think I like guys.”</p><p>“That’s okay, Zuko. I mean, I did just tell you that I’m in love with Ty Lee, right? Besides, Ozai isn’t here to get angry at you anymore; you’re free of him now.” An invisible tension in Zuko’s body eases: he can feel his shoulders relaxing, frown lines he hadn’t noticed disappearing. He feels free, more free than he’s felt in a long time.</p><p>“Thank you, Mai,” he says. “I think you’re my best friend.”</p><p>“I love you too,” she replies, and Zuko knows that this is right- this is what they were always supposed to be, friends, great friends, even, but nothing more.</p><p>“So, when you mean guys, is there a guy in particular or?” Mai asks, and it’s striking to see how much more carefree she can be without Azula.</p><p>“Mai!” Zuko groans. “There might be.”</p>
<hr/><p>
  <i>Dear Zuko,</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Hi, Sokka here. I’m never going to let you live that one down. </i>
</p><p>
  <i>I was thinking, I should come over to the Fire Nation. I’ve been helping with the Southern Water Tribe renovations but I feel like home isn’t really the best place for me, anymore. I guess I’ve become used to all the travelling and I thought I was homesick, but home feels too static for me. Besides, Aang said you could use some Water Tribe people helping you with all this ushering in a new era of peace for the Fire Nation. I should reach you a few days after this letter does,</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Your new Water Tribe Ambassador,</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Sokka.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>PS: Say hi to Kiyi for me!! </i>
</p><p>“Zuko!” Sokka says, hugging the Fire Lord. “Nice to see you after so long, buddy.”</p><p>“You too! I got your letter. I see you’ve appointed yourself the Water Tribe Ambassador, huh?” </p><p>“Yep, and you’re going to be very grateful when I help you with your Fire Lord duties. You look exhausted, have you been sleeping enough?” Sokka couldn’t help but point out, judging by Zuko’s dark circles; his friend really needed to take better care of himself. </p><p>“There’s things to do, a nation to fix. I’ve been sleeping enough, relatively,” Zuko replies, dismissively. Sokka narrows his eyes. Zuko clearly has not been sleeping enough, but it isn’t Sokka’s place to say anything, at least not right now. He’ll be sure to bring it up later, though.</p><p>“So, Fire Lord Zuko, do I get a tour of this palace or what?” he finally asks, and watches Zuko’s face light up.  It’s funny, how beautiful the boy looks, how young a smile can make him seem. Zuko’s hair is tied in a perfect top knot, and his clothes have no wrinkles, but that smile breaks through the illusion of perfect discipline and reminds Sokka of the boy who broke into The Boiling Rock with him. </p><p>(All his life, Sokka has thought of fire as something dangerous and out of control, but when Zuko’s eyes light up, they are the colour of flame that keeps away the cold at night and Sokka can’t help but think of how beautiful Zuko has become.)</p>
<hr/><p>“I’m exhausted,” Zuko groans, flopping onto his bed. </p><p>“Wow, Fire Lord, I have to say I’m surprised. I thought you’d be a little more energetic,” Sokka teases, sitting down on one of the couches.</p><p>“That palace tour ended up being a city tour! Not to mention that it’s almost 3 a.m. Why did I ever agree to this, again?” Zuko complains, but he feels lighter than he’s felt in the past few months since he was crowned.</p><p>“Because you wanted to spend time with me, remember? Besides, you did end up seeing a lot of the city that you hadn’t seen before, and you did enjoy yourself.”</p><p>“Yeah, I really did. Thank you, Sokka.” Zuko smiles lazily. It’s late and he’s bone-tired and he feels on top of the world, high on adventure and roaming the streets with Sokka. He smiles again and keeps doing it, because he simply can. </p><p>“Uh, no problem, Zuko. I’m glad I could help you take a bit of a break. You deserve it.”</p><p>“Huh, I suppose I do. I’m going to be so exhausted tomorrow, or today, I suppose. But it’ll be worth it.” Zuko yawns, feeling giddy. “I feel drunk. Did we drink?”</p><p>“No, we did not, because we thought that the Fire Lord getting drunk in front of his citizens wouldn’t be model behaviour. This is probably just some kind of adrenaline rush. You’ve been cooped up inside too long.”</p><p>“I suppose I have. We should really sleep, though. You can just crash here, it’s pretty safe. Suki and the other Kyoshi warriors would be guarding the room, anyway,” Zuko suggests. “Oh, no! Suki! I’m so sorry you didn’t get to meet your girlfriend.”</p><p>“Oh, Suki and I aren’t, uhm, doing that anymore. I guess we fell in love during a war and it just isn’t working out now that the war is over. You know how it is,” Sokka says, with a shrug.</p><p>“Agni, I’m sorry Sokka. That must be hard,” Zuko replies, sobering up a bit.</p><p>“What, no ‘that’s rough, buddy’ this time?” Sokka teases with a laugh as Zuko blushes and splutters. It isn’t his fault he’s so awkward. “Nah, but it’s really alright. It was mutual and we’re still really good friends.” </p><p>“Oh, that’s what it was like with me and Mai, too. Though I suppose we hadn’t really loved each other as more than friends before. But we’re good friends now, and it’s a lot better that way. She did get the better end of the stick though. She gets a soulmate, and I get a nation to govern, huh?”</p><p>“Mai has a soulm- Ty Lee.” Sokka realises.</p><p>“Yes! They’re disgustingly happy together, I’m so happy for them. It’s strange though, them being soulmates, or anyone being soulmates. I never thought I’d see two people so in love and now there are two pairs of soulmates in this palace.” It’s funny how words have a way of getting away with people in the late hours of the night. Soulmates were a forbidden topic for Zuko for so long, and here he is now, discussing it with Sokka.</p><p>“I think Katara and Aang are soulmates. They are disgustingly sappy, though. Have you ever wanted a soulmate, Zuko?”</p><p>“I never thought I’d be lucky enough to fall in love with someone and have them love me back the same way. Besides, soulmates didn’t matter when you were a prince. I always thought I’d marry for political reasons and not love. After all, my mother was never Ozai’s soulmate. She was always Ikem’s but she left him for this. What about you, Sokka?”</p><p>“I used to want a soulmate so badly. Now, I don’t know if I’ll have the time to love someone like that. You know what? It’s getting late, you should really sleep.”</p><p>“You too, Sokka. My bed’s big enough for three, anyway.”</p><p>(Before Zuko drifts to sleep, he thinks about how this bed and this room felt too big for him once, too empty and he thinks that maybe it’s a little less empty now.)</p>
<hr/><p>Sokka hadn’t expected the ‘sleeping in Zuko’s room’ to become a thing. But his own quarters felt too empty and he often found himself crawling to Zuko’s room for the company. Another perk of this was that he could coax Zuko into sleeping a little earlier too. They’d stay up at night, talking till one of them fell asleep but they’d never wake up next to each other. For one thing, Zuko’s bed was large enough for two people to sleep with an ample amount of space between them. For another, Zuko rose with the sun to practice his firebending while Sokka always woke up later. However, on some days, Zuko would take a break from his duties and the two of them would do something together.</p><p>Sokka had felt suffocated in the Southern Water Tribe. He loved his home, but he craved more. All the travelling with Aang had made him want to see the world, and so what if he’d ended up staying in the Fire Nation for a year instead of six months like he’d originally planned? The Southern Water Tribe could always find another Ambassador to the Earth Kingdom and Sokka would take up his position permanently. Of course, this had nothing to do with a certain Fire Lord who had been occupying a lot of Sokka’s thoughts lately.</p><p>Today is not one of those blessed days, however. </p><p>“Zuko, it’s been hours and you have another meeting in half an hour. You’re allowed to take things slow,” Sokka says, trying to get Zuko out of work for a while. “You know you’re not productive when you’re like this.”</p><p>Zuko gives Sokka a tired smile, and Sokka’s breath catches, because even when he resembles a zombie, Zuko is just so beautiful it makes Sokka’s heart ache. “I have to finish this first. There’s just, there’s a lot.”</p><p>“Okay, what are you looking over, exactly?” Sokka asks.</p><p>“I need to go over curfew laws. Sozin and Azulon had made them much stricter, so now I need to figure out where to draw the line and make the laws more normal and then I need to run it by everyone in tomorrow’s meeting to get it approved.”</p><p>“Okay, firstly, remember that these laws were made over two lifetimes, two reigns. You’ve only been Fire Lord for a year and a half and you can’t change an entire constitution this easily. It takes time, and your advisors will understand if you need more time. That being said, let me help you with some of it. It’ll be faster and less tiresome if we do it together.” </p><p>Zuko smiles gratefully at Sokka and then they sit side by side, and their shoulders are just about touching so Sokka can feel Zuko’s warmth, just enough for it to be distracting.</p><p>(Sokka loves spending days at the turtleduck pond with Zuko, or going to local festivals with him, but he also loves days like these, tedious though they may be, simply because he spends such days with Zuko too.)</p>
<hr/><p>When Sokka leaves for the Water Tribe for a month, Zuko misses him like a limb. He writes letters, and scratches out the words and begins again:<br/>
<s><br/>
<i>Dear Sokka,</i></s></p><p>
  <s>
    <i>You’d be happy to know all your nagging has worn off on me. I’m actually sleeping on time now, even in your absence</i>
  </s>
</p><p>
  <s>
    <i>Dear Sokka,</i>
  </s>
</p><p>
  <s>
    <i>Uncle Iroh came over today as a surprise. He says he missed your presence here. I suppose you’re an integral part of this household now. The hallways feel empty without you</i>
  </s>
</p><p>
  <s>
    <i>Dear Sokka, </i>
  </s>
</p><p>
  <s>
    <i>Kiyi misses you</i>
  </s>
</p><p>
  <s>
    <i>Dear Sokka,</i>
  </s>
</p><p>
  <s>
    <i>I miss you<br/>
</i>
  </s>
  <i><br/>
Dear Sokka, </i>
</p><p>
  <i>I love you, I’ve been in love with you for years now, I think. Maybe one day I'll be brave enough to tell you. I know you couldn’t feel the same, but I think you deserve to know how much I love you, how wonderful I think you are. You deserve the world Sokka, and I wish I had more to offer you. I wish I were brave enough to say this instead of writing it in a letter I’d never sent. When I was younger, my father told me that Fire Nation princes have no time for soulmates because we are incapable of loving and of being loved. The only thing I’d seen of love was a father who could never love his wife. I’d thought that love is a lonely experience, a painful one. I thought unrequited love is the most painful of them all. But now, I know that loving you can never be painful, even if you don’t love me back. You’re always there, Sokka. I see you in everything I do. When you aren’t there, I still turn to my left to tell you something I think you’d like. And you’re perfect, Agni, you even know how to guard my left because it’s harder for me to see and hear from the side. If there is one thing I have inherited from my mother, I think it is that I have so much love to give, and I’d give it all to you, if you’d accept it, if you’d accept me.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Love,</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Zuko. </i>
</p>
<hr/><p>When Sokka wakes up the next morning, he knows he needs to go back to the Fire Nation, to Zuko, back home.</p><p>“Aang, I need to borrow Appa.” And maybe it’s the desperation in his voice, or the fact that he hasn’t even packed properly, but Aang realises that whatever this is, it’s important to Sokka. He nods and Sokka makes his way home. He lies in that saddle and his muscles begin to cramp but he barely notices. When he finally reaches the palace, his legs nearly collapse, but he tries to walk as fast as he can.</p><p>“Sokka? Are you alright?” a voice behind him says- Zuko’s voice. Strong, warm arms catch him when his knees buckle and he melts into the touch. “You’re back so early, is something wrong?”</p><p>“Zuko,” he says, but he’s exhausted and can barely get the words out and he wants to cry.</p><p>“Hey, I’m here. What happened to you?” Zuko’s voice is ever comforting, soft, a little raspy, and spirits, Sokka loves him so much he could burst.</p><p>“You love me,” he says, and his voice feels raw and raspy and the words come out as a whisper. “You love me, don’t you?”</p><p>“I- yes, I love you. How, how did you know?” Zuko sounds afraid, almost.</p><p>“I saw it. Zuko, I woke up with your name next to my heart and spirits, I- you’re my soulmate,” he says, and the word ‘soulmate’ sounds sacred when he says it, like he soaked the syllables in honey before letting them out.</p><p>“But, you can’t be my soulmate. You don’t love me...like that,” Zuko says, and he sounds broken, as though he dares not hope.</p><p>“Zuko, I have your name on my heart and you’d have mine if you checked. I’ve loved you for so long. I just didn’t think you loved me the same.” There is silence then, as Sokka waits for his words to sink in. Zuko looks shocked, but then he smiles a bit, an uncertain smile.</p><p>“You love me? You love me!” Zuko laughs, a laugh of surprise and wonder and happiness and Sokka wishes he could bottle that sound and keep it with him forever. </p><p>“Zuko?”</p><p>“Yes, Sokka?” Zuko is smiling and all Sokka wants to do is kiss those stupid, pretty lips of his.</p><p>“Can I kiss you?”</p><p>Zuko closes the distance between them and like everything always is with Zuko, kissing him is easy, it’s natural and Sokka wonders why he had ever bothered kissing anyone else, loving anyone else, when he was clearly made to love Zuko. </p><p>Long ago, Sokka had wanted a soulmate because he wanted to experience the kind of love that is all consuming. But he learns that love is longing when he kisses Zuko all the way to their bedroom and when his fingers graze his name on Zuko’s chest and he can feel his soulmate’s heart beating under his fingertips. He learns that love is certainty, when he wakes up next to Zuko, still with him, always there for him. He learns that love is reaching and always finding someone there, reaching out to you too.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>hi! I'm Anu, and you can find me on <a href="https://thesurielbitch.tumblr.com">tumblr</a>. Feel free to rant to me about Zukka because I love these boys so much. I didn't think I'd write them because I've only watched the series once and I feel like I would have liked a better grip on the verse before writing, but well, thank god for transcripts. </p><p>Kudos and comments make my day!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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